Reading Can Be Fun?

You will have a difficult time finding any activity that a child with dyslexia hates more than reading, unless perhaps it is writing or spelling.

Reading is such an exhausting, frustrating, and emotionally loaded activity for someone with dyslexia, it is no wonder that they spend as little time at it as possible.  Then, of course, it becomes a chicken and egg problem.  They don’t spend much time reading, their reading doesn’t progress quickly, it remains a difficult and unpleasant activity, so they don’t spend much time reading.

If you want your child with dyslexia to have the motivation to want to learn to read, you need to separate the activity of learning to read from experiencing the fascinating information, inspiring ideas, and sheer enjoyment that can be found in a book.  Also, you don’t want their natural curiosity to be dampened simply because they can’t read at the level of their intellectual ability yet.  Almost all children, except the exceptional readers, are capable of learning far beyond their reading level for most of the elementary years.  You have to be their bridge into the wonder of books so they want to learn to read in order to discover these worlds for themselves. 

 

So how do you do this?   How do you create a love of books and learning in a child who struggles to read?

 

Here are five strategies to help you get started.

 

1)  Make Sure the Books You Read Are Interesting TO YOU!

 

This is the single most important point whether you are reading to your child or reading for your own interest!  Even if you don’t get anything else out of this post, take this point to heart!  If it isn’t interesting to you, there is no enjoyment, it becomes work, and no one wants to do it.  A good story is a good story. Period.

But just because it is a “classic” or a “best-seller” doesn’t mean that you will enjoy it.  My kids enjoyed many classic stories, but we also had stories that we stopped.  Swiss Family Robinson is a good example.  Many kids love it and it is a well-regarded, classic adventure tale and I was enjoying it.  My kids hated it.  We stopped reading it about a third of the way through and switched to something else.

Some kids love fiction and want to immerse themselves in other times, worlds, or environments.  Others don’t like fiction, they want fact-based books that are really “true” stories.  There are many fantastic science, history, biography, nature, and other books that are factually accurate and also written for kids.  Find out what appeals to your child.  I guarantee there are well written books to suit every child’s tastes.

 

2)  Reading and Books Should Be a Fun, Social Activity

 

For someone who struggles to read, there is nothing particularly enjoyable about reading.  It is just hard work that is marginally rewarding if it is about something that keenly interests you.  Spending together enjoying a book is about much more than the reading.  It is time together, cuddled up together with a fuzzy blanket if your child is tactile, looking at the pictures together (if there are any), having a snack, and generally enjoying each other’s company.  This is very rewarding time, regardless of the book.  If your child likes to keep busy then playing quietly, drawing, doing handicrafts, or building something while listening is also time well enjoyed.  The point is that the time spent listening to a story is enjoyable, and over time that pleasure is associated with reading and stories.  If you do not like reading out loud, then listen to audiobooks together.  Although, I do encourage you to read to your children.  Reading out loud is a learned skill, and I found it very difficult at the beginning.  I had to change my speed of reading and learn to adjust my voice to make it more interesting for them to listen.  I did not read out loud very well when I started, but children are forgiving and they don’t notice those things.  They love that YOU are reading to them, and that is enough.

 

3)  Read Regularly Yourself, and Talk About What You Reading

 

Children learn more from what you do than from what you say.  If you are telling them that reading is important and they need to read more, but never pick up a book yourself, then you are wasting your breath.  They will know what your priorities are by how you spend your time.  Set aside time in your day or week to read, schedule it in if you have to.  It doesn’t have to be long, just a consistent activity.

You don’t like reading?  Keep in mind that dyslexia is genetic, and perhaps your dislike of reading stems from the fact that you are also dyslexic, but never identified?  Maybe you haven’t found the type of book you enjoy?  The key to enjoying reading is finding what you like to read.  Fiction (historical, mystery, thriller, romance, psychological, young adult, sci-fi, etc.) or non-fiction (biography, travel, natural world, science, history, self-help, food, decorating, DIY. etc.)?  Think about what you enjoy and what interests you, then look for those books.

There are a number of fantastic blogs and podcasts that talk about books and reading.  Use those as springboards to get you started, and don’t be afraid to ditch a book you aren’t enjoying.  If your child sees you spending time reading and hears you discussing or talking about what you are enjoying or learning from what you read, they are more likely to place value on the importance of reading, and listen to you when you talk about reading being an important skill to learn. 

Be aware, if you are reading on a tablet or e-book, make sure they know you are reading a book and not scrolling through social media.  It looks the same to a child.

 

4)  Take Regular Trips to the Library

 

There are few things as exciting for a child as having their own library card and being able to check out books themselves.  It doesn’t matter whether or not they read the books when you get home.  What does matter is that they spend time browsing books and selecting some to sign out. 

Sometimes I had to put limits on how many books they could sign out (10 for example).  Plan to read some of the books out loud to them (see point #2 above).  It doesn’t matter if their only criterion for choosing a book is the cover, or the pictures.  If they get pleasure from flipping through the pages, then that is time well spent.  Hearing the story read out loud will help them to decide if they want more books by that author or if they want something different next time.

Make it easy to keep track of library books at home.  We had a basket in the family room that kept all of the library books in one place.  If someone wanted a book to look at in their room, that was fine, but it had to be returned to the basket before the next book was taken out.  A little consistency at the beginning, and the kids will soon learn to keep track of the books.

Going to the library isn’t about reading books, it is about spending some time to enjoy and appreciate being around books, a sense of independence (choosing their own books), and generally making books a part of your life.  Libraries have so many great resources, including DVD’s.  I limited our kids to 1 DVD each, since they could get a new one next week, and with 3 kids everyone needed to have a turn watching (and re-watching) their DVD.  Don’t forget to introduce them to the audiobook section!

 

5)  Make Stories a Part of Everyday Life

 

Stories and storytelling are part of what makes humans unique in the animal kingdom.  We use stories to teach, to entertain, to remember, to warn, to pass the time, and many other reasons.  Not all stories are written in books.  Tell stories to your kids about your childhood.  Kids especially love hearing about things that got you in trouble!  Encourage extended family members (grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc.) to tell stories about their childhood to your children.  Again, kids especially love hearing your siblings tell tales about you!  Tell them stories about when they were younger, funny things they did, places you went with them.  Encourage them to tell you stories about their day.  By the way, complaining isn’t telling a story, so if they have a complaint, hear them out, then give them a different perspective on the incident, and move on.  As a side bonus, listening to stories and telling stories does a lot to help develop skills in writing and composition.  Include stories throughout your daily life.  It will add a richness to your days, and also create an awareness in your child that stories can be interesting and a lot of fun.

 

There are many other ways to make reading fun.  The point is to find a way to make reading part of your everyday life that is fun, engaging, and encourages an interest in books beyond the struggle of learning to read.  How do you make reading part of your everyday?